Number 9

Meaning of Number 9

Number 9 is the number of magic.

Nine is a sacred number.

Nine is the number of completion and fulfillment.

Nine is a symbol of wisdom and good leadership.

Nine is the number of heaven.

In Hinduism nine is the number of Brahma, the Creator.

The Pythagoreans called the number nine the “Ennead”.

They thought of nine as unlucky as it is one short of ten. The Pythagoreans considered ten to be Perfect.

Number 9 – Lucky in China

The ninth day of the Chinese New Year is the birthday of the Jade Emperor.

The Jade Emperor is the supreme god worshipped by the Taoists.

The Jade Emperor rules all Heaven and Earth.

In China the number nine is an auspicious number. When number nine is pronounced, it sounds like the word for “long lasting”.

Number 9 – Fun Facts

November comes from the Latin word “novem”, meaning nine.

The atomic number for nine is fluorine.

In Japan the number nine may be considered unlucky. When number nine is pronounced, it sounds like the word for “pain”.

A nine-sided polygon is called a nonagon and also an enneagon.

Norwegian runner, Grete Waitz won the New York Marathon nine times.

For the Hebrews nine is a symbol of truth.

When multiplied number 9 always reproduces itself.

1×9 = 9	0+9=9
2 X 9 = 18	1+8 = 9
3 X 9 = 27	2 + 7 =9
4 X 9 = 36	3 + 6 = 9
5 X 9 = 45	4 + 5 = 9
6 X 9 = 54	5 + 4 = 9
7 X 9 = 63	6 + 3 = 9
8 X 9 = 72	7 + 2 = 9
9 X 9 = 81	8 + 1 = 9

Number 9 in Astrology

Sagittarius is the ninth astrological sign in the Zodiac.(November 22 – December 21)

Number nine is the number of Uranus.

Number nine is lucky for Aquarius.

Number 9 in the Tarot Deck

In the Tarot nine is the card of the Hermit.

The Hermit symbolizes self-examination and refection.

It shows willingness to seek advice.

Reversed it is stubbornness and the refusal to listen to advice.

Nine Digits in Numerology

The main focus in numerology is on the numbers 1-9.

A numerological cycle is naturally a nine-year cycle.

Numerologists believe every person is at all times in a personal year somewhere in the cycle.

The Curse of Scotland

The Nine of Diamonds is called “The Curse of Scotland”. Many different stories are told about this card. The most common is that Sir John Dalrymple, the Earl of Stair, used this card to authorize the Glen Coe Massacre in 1692.

He refused to tolerate that the MacDonald clan had delivered “the oath of allegiance to King William II” after the deadline.

In this massacre thirty-eight MacDonalds were murdered by soldiers. The soldiers had been staying with them as guests and enjoying the hospitality of the MacDonalds.

The Nine Bows

The “Nine Bows” was a term used in ancient Egypt. The Nine Bows represented the enemies of Egypt. Hieroglyphic signs of the Nine Bows are found on the base of thrones, under the feet of statues of kings and also on the sandals of Tutankhamen.

This was used as symbolism for stepping on the enemies of Egypt.

Tutankhamen was only nine years old when he mounted the throne in 1333 B.C. He was born in 1341 B.C. He married his half-sister. They had two still born daughters found in his tomb. He died only 19 years old.

Number 9 Parsley Superstition

– Nine Times to the Devil

In England there was a superstition that parsley went nine times to the devil and back before it started to sprout.

For this reason it was not appropriate to give a parsley plant as a gift.

Naturally it was considered quite unlucky for anyone to receive a gift that had frequently visited the devil.

The Nine Fruits of the Spirit

The Apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Galatians about nine fruits of the Spirit. Galatians 5:22.

The nine fruits of the Spirit are: 1. Love 2. Joy 3. Peace 4. Patience 5. Kindness 6. Goodness 7. Faithfulness 8. Gentleness 9. Self-Control

The Hour of Prayer

The Ninth Hour is the Hour of Prayer

“Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour” Acts  3:1

“And Cornelius said, “Four days ago, about this hour, I was keeping the ninth hour of prayer in my house…” Acts 10:30

Jesus died during the ninth hour, hanging on the cross.

In Catholicism a novena is the act of saying prayers for nine consecutive days.

The prayers of novena are of urgency and for a special and specific cause.

The name “novena” comes from the Latin word “novenus”, meaning “nine each”.

The Nine Days’ Queen

Lady Jane Grey was Queen of England for nine days (10th of July –  19th of July 1553). Her predecessor was Edward VI and her successor was Mary I (Bloody Mary).

Edward VI made his cousin, Lady Jane his heir even though he had two half-sisters; Mary (Catholic) and Elizabeth (Protestant).

Lady Jane (Protestant) was charged with high treason and beheaded in the Tower of London on February 12, 1554.

She was only 17 years old when she was executed. She is often called the “Nine Days’ Queen”.

Lady Jane Grey. Engraving by Willem van de Passe

The Ninth President

The ninth president of the United States was William H. Harrison. 1841.

He was the first president to die in office.

Harrison was only president for 32 days. He died of pneumonia.

Beethoven and Number 9

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) wrote nine symphonies.

The melody of the European Anthem is from Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony.

Europe Day

Europe Day is May 9th of each year. It was on May 9, 1950 Robert Schuman (twice Prime Minister of France) presented a proposal of the united Europe to the maintenance of peaceful relations.

The meaning of the symbol of the twelve stars on the European Flag: Number 12 .

Double Ninth Festival

The Double Ninth festival is an old Chinese tradition celebrated on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month. In Taiwan this day is also dedicated to the senior citizens.

The festival is associated with chrysanthemums. Poems and paintings of chrysanthemums are made. Chrysanthemum tea and wine are enjoyed.

It is also traditional to hike in the mountains on this day. In the Gregorian calendar the Double Ninth festival falls in October.

On the Ninth Night

In Viking times the father had to recognize a newborn child on the ninth night. The infant was placed on the knee of the father. Water was sprinkled over the baby and the child was given a name.

The newborn was now a legal member of the family.

After the ninth night the baby could no longer be killed without it being classified as murder.

Nine Men’s Morris

Nine Men’s Morris is a strategy board game for two players.

This game dates back to Ancient Rome. It was extremely popular in Medieval England.

It is known that the pilgrims onboard the Mayflower entertained themselves by playing Nine Men’s Morris

The game has maintained its popularity to this day and age.

The Nine Worthies

The Nine Worthies were introduced in the early 14^th century by Jacques de Longuyon in his Voeux du Paon.

These nine were considered perfect representatives of chivalry who brought great glory to their nations and who deserved the highest honor and respect of their countrymen.

The Nine Worthies consisted of three Pagans, three Jews and three Christians.

Pagans: Hector, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar

Jews: Joshua, David, Judas Maccabeus

Christians: King Arthur, Charlemagne, Godfrey of Bouillon

A beautiful 19 meter high fountain from the 14^th century has sculptures of the Nine Worthies. It is located in Nuremberg, Germany.

The Cat

There are many superstitions about cats and one well known saying is the all famous saying: “A cat has nine lives”.

Sonnet 9 By William Shakespeare

The Nine-Pointed Star

The Bahá’is use the nine pointed star as a symbol of their faith.

Bahá’i Houses of Worship have nine sides. They also have nine doors and nine gardens.

The nine-pointed star may be used on gravestones.

Nine is the minimum number of members in a Spiritual Assembly or House of Justice, the administrative bodies elected by Bahá’is around the world.

The Bahá’is do not have any form of priesthood or clergy.

They consider the number nine a symbol of completeness and fulfillment, as the highest single digit number.

The Bahá’i faith claims to be the fulfillment of all prior religions.

They accept among others, Krishna, Abraham, Buddha, Jesus and Muhammad as earlier messengers.

The Bahá’i faith teaches monotheism.

The nine-pointed star may symbolize nine great religions of the world:

Bahá’i, Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Judaism, Shinto and Shikhism.

Nine is the numerical value of the word Baha according to the Arabic system of numerology, called the Abjad system.

Baha is the Arabic word for Glory. Bahá’ulláh’s given name was Mírzá Husayn ‘ Alí. He was born in Teheran, Persia on the 12th of November 1817. 

He is known to his followers as Bahá’ulláh, “The Glory of God”.

His works include the book, “The Seven Valleys “.

Bahá’ullah received his revelation in a dungeon in Teheran nine years after Bab (Gate) claimed to be a Messenger of God and told of one to come that was greater than himself, “Him Whom God shall manifest”.

Bahá’is consider Bab as the forerunner of the Bahá’i faith.

Number 9 in Greek Mythology

The Muses

The Nine Muses in Greek mythology were daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne (Memory). Zeus and Mnemosyne had a love affair that lasted nine nights.

They were the goddesses who inspired gifted artists, musicians, dancers and authors.

The Muses were followers of god Apollo (god of music and prophecy), but also good friends of the goddess Athena (Greek myth)/ Minerva (Roman myth).

Plato built an altar for the Nine Muses in the library of his famous school, The Academy.

“Muse” is the source for words like museum, amuse, music and mosaic.

The word “museum” means shrine or temple to the Muses.

The picture is of the Nine Muses and Minerva.

The Nine Muses

Calliope	protector of Epic Poetry
Clio	protector of History
Erato	protector of Lyric Poetry
Euterpe	protector of Music
Melpomene	protector of Tragedy
Polyhymnia	protector of Sacred Poetry
Terpsichore	protector of Dance
Talia	protector of Comedy
Urania	protector of Astronomy

Demeter and Persephone Reunited

In Greek mythology: Demeter. In Roman mythology: Cerus.

The Greek goddess Demeter (goddess of grain) went for nine days and nine nights searching for her beloved daughter, Core. She was only to discover that Core had been abducted by Hades (god of the Underworld).

To make a long story short, they came to an agreement that Core was to spend three months of every year with Hades as his queen of the Underworld.

She was to be known as Persephone. Grain would not grow during those three months, as Demeter longed for her daughter.

The remaining nine months Persephone would be reunited with her mother.

Leto – 9 Days of Horrific Pains

Zeus had quite a few love affairs.

He had an affair with Leto (goddess of the night). Leto got pregnant.

She had to flee from the rage of Hera (the wife of Zeus). Leto found refuge on an island.

For nine days and nine nights she suffered horrific pains of labor before giving birth to the twins, Artemis (goddess of hunting) and Apollo (god of music and prophecy).

Number 9 in Norse Mythology

Odin – Hung 9 Days

Odin – hung nine days in Yggdrasil.

Odin, the chief of gods, hung himself in Yggdrasil. Yggdrasil was the name of the tree of life. He spent nine days and nine nights hanging in the tree.

Odin made this sacrifice of himself to gain power over the runes and learn of all their secrets.

The 9 Daughters of Aegir and Ran 

Aegir was a sea god. He was married to Ran. They lived in an enormous castle at the bottom of the ocean. Whenever Aegir rose to the surface, it was only for the purpose of destroying a ship.

Ran would catch the drowning sailors in her net and pull them down to her castle. If the sailors wore gold, they were secured a good treatment.

The Vikings would often sacrifice every tenth prisoner to the sea god in order to ensure a safe journey.

“Heimdall and his nine mothers” 1908 by W.G. Collingwood (1854-1932)

Aegir was the father of nine daughters, the waves. The nine daughters had names describing the different characteristics of the waves.

The nine sisters were all the mother of one son, named Heimdall. He became the guard of Bifrost, the rainbow bridge between Asgard (home of the gods) and Midgard (the world of the humans).

New Rings every 9 Days

Two dwarfs named Brokk and Sindri made a beautiful gold ring for Odin, the chief god. This was a magic ring. The name of the ring was Draupnir. 

Every ninth day the ring would reproduce eight new rings of equal quality as Draupnir, the original ring.

The Last 9 Steps of Thor

Thor takes nine steps and falls dead to the ground

In Norse mythology there is a time called Ragnarok. Ragnarok is the doom of the gods. Ragnarok is the end of the world.

During Ragnarok the god named Thor (the thunder god) fights a horrific battle with the sea serpent named Jormungand, also known as the Midgard serpent.

Thor finally manages to kill the serpent.

As the serpent dies, Thor walks nine steps. As he takes his ninth step, Thor falls dead to the ground. He died from all the poison the serpent had spit out.

The failed marriage of Skadi and Njord

In Norse mythology the marriage between Njord and Skadi failed miserably.

Skadi loved the mountains and Njord was the sea god.

They could not agree where to live.

The couple spent nine days in the mountains.  Njord could not stand it. He complained he could not sleep, because the cry of the wolves kept him awake.

The couple also spent nine days at Noatun, by the sea. Noatun was the home of Njord.

Skadi refused to live by the sea. She complained the seagulls kept her awake.

After spending nine days in the mountains and nine days by the sea, the couple agreed to separate.

The marriage failed.

The 9 Worlds

In Norse mythology there are nine worlds.  Yggdrasil (the tree of life) is in the midst of these nine worlds.

Asgard	The home of the gods called Aesir
Alfheim	The land of the light elves
Vanaheim	The home of the Vanir gods
Midgard	The world of the humans
Jotunheim	This was where the giants dwelled
Svartalfheim	The dark elves resided here
Nidavellir	The dwarfs had their territory here
Muspelheim	The land of fire. The ruler was Surt
Niflheim	The mist world. In the center of Niflheim was the world of the dead, ruled by Hel